1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a laminating apparatus particularly suitable for producing a laminated object in a thin plate shape such as a solar battery module.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, various developments have been made on solar batteries with the aim of effective use of solar energy. Further, beside crystal type solar batteries using single crystal silicon or polycrystalline silicon, various types of solar batteries have been contrived, such as amorphous solar batteries using amorphous silicon (noncrystalline silicon). However, since silicon itself in any of these crystalline and amorphous types is subject to chemical change and has low resistance against a physical impact, a solar battery module in which silicon is laminated with a transparent vinyl film, tempered glass, heat-resistant glass, or the like is generally used.
Further, for use as building materials, an integrated module and the like in which an exterior wall material or a roof material is integrated with a solar battery module have come to be produced in recent years. A method to laminate a solar battery module is to interpose strings (solar battery cells) between a vinyl film or glass and a back sheet via a filler such as, for example, EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) resin, and melt the filler by temperature given by heating under vacuum.
Conventionally, as a laminating apparatus for producing such solar battery modules and the like, there has been known a laminating apparatus which laminates an object to be laminated in a laminating part having a diaphragm on an upper side and a heater panel on a lower side, by melting a filler inside the object to be laminated and pressing the object to be laminated sandwiched between the diaphragm and the heater panel. Regarding such a laminating apparatus, the present applicant has disclosed “a laminating apparatus” in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3655076. In such a laminating apparatus, a solar battery module is placed on a heater panel in a pressure-reduced state and the atmosphere is introduced into an upper chamber above a diaphragm, whereby the solar battery module is sandwiched and pressed between an upper surface of the heater panel and a lower surface of the diaphragm.